A Letter from Nate Johnson

"A Bright and Burning Light on the Squirming Tentacles of Empire..."

By Nate JohnsonOn behalf of The Fund for Authentic Journalism

March 10, 2004

Please Distribute Widely

Dear Friends,

The Fund for Authentic Journalism, the stem from which Narco News blooms anew, calls out for sustenance. Narco News, the scourge of media manipulators, of the traffickers in lies and distortions, of corrupt bankers, of shiftless bureaucrats and bureau chiefs, of thieving technocrats and scheming embassy staff, must grow. It must not be allowed to wither from lack of care, nor perish on the vine.

Who can forget the Zapatistas marching on the Zocalo? Or the streets of Caracas spilling over with people to return their elected government in Venezuela? Or the Bolivian people seething in revolt against ‘Goni’? I count myself among the many readers who will reply simply: “I cannot.” Working ceaselessly, Narco News and its correspondents have delivered us these stories and countless more.

Dear friends, now is the time to give what we are able in support of this effort. Please remember this effort is not just for an independent media: it is for an authentic media, for a revolution in media, which rejects what Stig Dagerman, anarchist and authentic journalist, rejected a half-century ago when he wrote:

“Journalism is the art of showing up too late, as soon as possible. I’ll never practice that.”

In similar fashion, our friends at Narco News embody the struggle not just for a independent journalism, but for an authentic journalism which shows up on time, in real time, while there’s still time.

For these reasons, Narco News, whose appearance heralds a bright spring for democracy, transparency, honesty, decency and common sense throughout our hemisphere must flourish. Let’s shine a bright and burning light on the squirming tentacles of the Empire. Let us donate to the Fund for Authentic Journalism.